


Build Me Up

by daisychaser



Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: F/F, Femslash, Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-15
Updated: 2016-02-18
Packaged: 2018-05-20 17:36:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6018766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daisychaser/pseuds/daisychaser
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Of all the people in the world, the last person Hori Chie expects to find her interesting is the rising Idol, Kotone Mitsuba.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sight

**Author's Note:**

> For those of you who don’t know who Kotone is, She is the girl that Hori ends up saving in the light novels, and it’s kinda gay. This will also be the first installment of tgfemslashweek ! It’s sort of short but I sort of forgot about it <3

It was unexpected. Chie didn’t expect that the first text of the day wouldn’t be from one of her clients but from someone she hadn’t heard from in a while, Kotone Mitsuba. The last time they had been in contact was three months ago, when Kotone had thanked her for finding her mother.

The text was vague, and the tone was undecipherable.

[ TEXT: MITSUBA KOTONE. ]

>> Hey Chie, I’m back in Tokyo.  
>> I have no plans for the day, and none of my friends are in the area.  
>> Would you like to have coffee with me?

 

To someone like Chie, who was never an object of desire, this was a bit of a shock, but it still didn’t stop her from responding to the Idol. She felt something in the back of her throat that was unfamiliar.

For once in her life, Chie Hori was _**nervous**_.

[ TEXT: HORI CHIE. ]

>> Sure, where do you want to go?

>> There’s a new cafe in Ueno. It's not really a cafe. It’s more of a restaurant, but I

     I haven’t really been by the lake in a while.

The three minute wait after she had sent the text felt like hell. Chie had never felt this way about anything before, but because of the oddness and the weirdness of the whole situation. She simply wanted to know why Kotone was showing interest in her, when the days they had spent together before hand were basically filled with anxiety and fear. Had Kotone wanted to live that all over again?

[ TEXT: MITSUBA KOTONE. ]

>> No, I’m already somewhere, I’m in the fourth district.  
           >> I’ll send you the address.  
           >> I hope this isn’t too troublesome.

[ TEXT: HORI CHIE. ]

>> Of course not, I’ll be there soon.

Chie stood at the door, with fear at the back of her chest, she really wasn't used to doing these things. Casual encounters were something she was never used too, due to her odd hours and habits, but perhaps Kotone found that endearing about her.

It took Chie twenty minutes to get to the fourth ward. Each one of those minutes felt like hours, because she just couldn’t stop thinking about Kotone.

Their first encounter wasn’t something usual, but then again none of her ‘friends’ were met under normal circumstances. But for some reason, the circumstances that she had met Kotone under were perhaps why Kotone had wanted to see her again.

The four days that they were together, where she was hiding Kotone under her wing, until she could make sure she was safe, was something that Chie remembered clearly, as they were special to her. Though Chie was busy working overtime to save Kotone’s life and find her family, she admired Kotone whenever she could. Her hair was amber, and she had piercing green eyes were the two features that she remembered the most about her. But the most striking feature the Kotone had was the sad expression she wore all the time. Chie had only seen her smile three to four times when she was under her wing. Perhaps now she didn’t wear that expression because she had her family back.

She pushed the door to the open to the cafe, only to see that it was empty. Empty by cafe standards anyway. There was an old couple sitting, and a group of teenage girls in the corner. Chie gripped the strap of her bag harder. Nothing scared Chie more than a bunch of girls, high school wasn’t the best experience for her, and girls were usually the ones who messed up that experience.

Kotone was sitting at the back of the cafe, looking out the window. She sat like she was posing for an artist, this was the pose that she wanted to remembered by. The sunlight gave her an ethereal glow, it was almost like she had a halo instead of an aura of light around her.

Chie wanted to capture the moment without disturbing her. She grabbed the camera from her side, and pulled it to her face. With one press of a button she captured the angelic being that was seated before her.

“Mitsuba, I do apologize for being late. The metro was having delays due to the rain. I hope it wasn’t an inconvenience. I know you don’t have many days off.” Chie was pilot with Kotone, because of her status. She didn’t want to seem rude.

“You weren’t late.” Kotone paused, twisting her head towards Chie, she seemed to be wearing a smile for once instead of the pout Chie was used too. “I don’t mind it. I know you are a busy person too.”

Chie shrugged, as if that statement was false.  “I’m my own boss. I just prefer to work all year around. I don’t have anything else to do.” She tried to not act anxious or nervous, but in reality, whatever this was, was something she wasn’t used too. She wondered if this was how Shuu felt every time she was around Kaneki. “Is there a reason you invited me here?”

“I just wanted to spend sometime with you. I don’t really get to spend time with someone who isn’t an idol. And you're an interesting person whom I happen to click with. ”

“ Are they not your type of people?” Chie asked while sliding her hand across the table to get the menu, she wouldn’t pass up an opportunity to have something to eat, as she would undoubtedly forget later on in her day.

Kotone’s glossy pink lips parted, and she pressed a finger to them. “Perhaps. A lot of them are fine, but I don’t enjoy the company of half of them as much as I enjoy spending time with you.”

Chie wasn’t the type of person to blush, and she didn’t blush this time, but instead she felt a grin creeping up. She always hated the way her teeth looked when she grinned, so she rarely did it. She made a feeble attempt to hide it by covering up her mouth with the menu.

With a heart filled with hope, for once Chie wanted this to go well. She had enough of tragedy and bloodshed for a while.


	2. Sound

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chie gets teased about getting a date by Tsukiyama and Kanae

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shuu has weaseled herself into my stories again :^)

“ Hori has a date! This is exciting, Kanae! Come over I need to tell you something!” Shuu clasped her hands together, and then gave Chie a smile. “Stop acting like this is something horrible do you know how many people would kill to be in your position?” 

“Would that someone be you?” Chie asked while fixing her camera. “I just don’t want it to be a huge deal because Miss Mitsuba wanted to me to keep it on the quiet. She’s an idol, something like this could get her fired.” Chie sighed, and plugged her memory card back into the camera. She searched through her photos for the photo of her that she had taken, the pictures online weren't something she trusted. A lot of them seemed retouched, and she prefered Kotone’s natural beauty over the false image that the was publicized.

Shuu let out a bitter laugh. She knew that Chie was poking fun at the fact that she hadn’t gotten anywhere with eating Kaneki or gaining his laugh. “Hori, perhaps I’m just happy for you? I honestly thought you were never going to get laid at this point. “ 

Chie raised an eyebrow and then handed the camera to her, “ I took a picture of her last time we met. I don’t think you know what she looks like.”

Shuu zoomed in on the girl’s face, she certainly, was much more attractive than Hori Chie. Shuu wondered for a moment why Kotone had picked out Chie of all people. “She looks familiar. Tell me, did we meet before hand?” Chie nodded. “Was she on my ‘to eat list?’ no innuendo intended.” Chie nodded again.  “You have magnificent taste then.” Shuu stated before sliding the camera back to Chie. “When are you two going out again?”

There was an unimpressed look as she took the camera back into her hands. The small woman was uninterested in telling Shuu the date and time of her next rendezvous. “Why are you so interested in my life? It’s not like it’s going to be anything serious. She’s a rising star, and I’m busy.” 

As the sentence was finished, Kanae finally arrived at the table where Shuu and Chie had been seated. They were wearing the traditional family uniform, and holding a tray with only one coffee cup, presumably for Shuu, as Chie tried her best to avoid having caffeine during the day. It was an odd habit, but she would rather not crash during the day, while on the job. 

“Hori, you’re the only person I know right now who has a love life. My father hasn’t gone on a date in over ten years, and Kanae isn’t a hit with the ladies. Despite having the charming looks of a Tsukiyama family member, Kanae prefers being alone.” Shuu stated, while taking the cup from Kanae, then she ushered them to pull up a chair and sit with them. Because this was their master’s orders, Kanae obliged and sat down next to the odd duo. “Kanae, Hori has a girlfriend, can you believe that?” Shuu said in a hushed whisper that Chie could most certainly hear. 

Kanae tilted their head, and carefully examined Chie, wondering if anything had changed in the past two days before stating one thing. “Who is she dating?” They responded in a low voice, as if trying not to insult the woman seated before them. 

“Miss Mitsuba Kotone! Have you heard of her?” Shuu asked before grabbing her phone off the table. She clicked away on her phone, and pulled up a video of the singer, and handed it to Kanae. Shuu leaned over so that she could watch the video with Kanae. 

There were no headphones, so the video played out loud. Shuu & Kanae’s taste in music wasn’t Japanese Pop, but they could both appreciate how beautiful Kotone sounded on stage, and how pretty she was in her costume. 

Despite not watching the video along with others, Chie closed her eyes and listened to the song. Her voice was something close to a hymn, there was something divine and holy about it. It was as if an angel was in their presence, or at least that was how Chie felt about it. 

“I’m having trouble believing this girl is with her. Are playing a joke on me?” Kanae asked looking up from the phone and at Shuu and Chie with hopeful eyes. 

Shuu shook her head. “I’m afraid that I’m not kidding. Hori has a girlfriend who’s attractive and talented.” Shuu followed up the statement with a laugh and then took the coffee cup into her lap. 

Chie on the other hand, had begun to pack up her stuff, placing her memory card into her backpack, and then standing up and putting on her camera. It dangled around her neck, as she put a few more things into her backpack. 

“Leaving so soon, Hori?” Shuu asked, crossing her legs. She seemed quite content with the conversation that they were having beforehand. 

“I have to work to make a living, unlike some people here.” She replied before walking away from the table. 

 

Of course that was a lie. The only reason that Chie had cut the conversation short, was due to the fact that her date wasn’t something that was days or months away, it was something that merely a few hours from the time she had informed Shuu about it. 

Kotone was working today, she was going to be at the studio for a few hours before meeting up with Chie. To counteract this, Chie decided that the best thing to do was to go to dinner after it, and then call it a day. She checked the time on her watch and saw that it was only four PM. But she she left the place early considering how far out the Tsukiyama mansion was compared to Tokyo, she would be able to make it to the studio with just a few minutes to spare if she managed to catch the bus.

Upon arriving to the studio, Chie found her way in through the back, rather than present her ID at the front table like most people do. She knew that they wouldn’t let her in due to her childlike appearance and the fact that she wasn’t a celebrity. Though if she did play her cards right, they could have let her in due to the sole fact that she was an associate to the Tsukiyama family. 

Chie used the staircase to sneak to the second floor, and then looked around for a bit till she found the booth that Kotone was recording in. There was a sort of rush that Chie was unfamiliar with when she thought about how close she was to spending time with Kotone.

Perhaps she had more than just a simple crush on Kotone. 


	3. Taste

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chie & Kotone go out for dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is like so... so ... so late.... im so sorry school has been kicking my ass.

   The phone in Chie’s hand vibrated, indicating that she had gotten a message. Chie lifted the phone, she prepared herself for a text from Shuu, or anyone who really who needed her help urgently. But instead of a sigh escaping her mouth, Chie had a smile grace her face instead.   
   [ TEXT: MITSUBA KOTONE ]   
   >> Hey Chie! I’m done with my recording session, where are you?  
   >> I hope not too far?  
   With her small but quick fingers, Chie typed up the response in the most boring but well meaning way. There wasn’t any point in wasting any time on flowery romantic texts. There was no meaning in them most of the time. Texts that were romantic were just ones to waste time, and Chie was perhaps the most time efficient person in existence. Despite seemingly wasting all her time taking pictures, Chie followed a strict schedule which usually wasn’t flexible. But for Kotone, who would undoubtedly go on tour in a few days, Chie made exception.  
   [ TEXT: HORI CHIE ]  
   >> I’m outside your booth.   
   >> the guard wouldn’t let me in. I tried to tell him I was your sister  
   >> but i guess we can’t suspend disbelief for that.  
   Kotone had her hair in a high ponytail. What she was wearing was similar in design as Chie. Instead of wearing her usual vibrant dresses, shirts and skirts, Kotone was wearing shorts and a simple T-Shirt. Chie, being her odd self, took a picture of Kotone. Kotone hated having her picture taken but much like Chie made an exception for her, she did the same.   
   Kotone greeted Chie with handshake, fearing anything else might give away that their relationship was beginning to become something more solidified than just an innocent fling. “I’m surprised that you’re on time considering you had business in the twenty-first ward before this.”   
   Chie looked very much unimpressed to see Kotone, despite her heart fluttering in her chest. “I try my best to give everyone the time of day, while not rushing anything. And besides I was just meeting up with someone for a consultation for a commission.”  
   “Did it go well?” Kotone asked.  
   “ I would say so. I hope they don’t expect too much of me. I’m a photographer, not a miracle worker.” Chie started remembering what Shuu had told her earlier this day. “Anyway, where do you wanna go? I know you said you wanted to go out for dinner but where do you wanna go exactly?” Chie began walking towards the elevator, with Kotone following her.   
   “I thought maybe you wanted to choose. I mean I would probably take you somewhere you’ll dislike, don’t you think?” Kotone stated and pressed the button on the elevator. “ You didn’t like the cafe, remember.”  
   “There’s a good diner near by. It’s just a few minutes away.” Chie thought out loud, then looked over at Kotone. “If you feel like drinking, we can go to the Izakaya on the corner. I have a late day tomorrow so we can stay a while.”   
   “Would you laugh at me if I told you I have never been to an Izakaya?” Kotone stated nervously. “I’ve always been so busy with work. “  
“We all live different lives. I don't expect yours to be the same as mine.” Chie responded holding the elevator door open for Kotone. “I've been to the one on the corner a couple of times. They hired me to take a few pictures for their site.”  
“You've certainly been around. You don't seem like the type of person who would do such things honestly.” Kotone pressed the button for the ground floor. She was always impressed with Chie. Chie was one of the most multi-faceted women she had ever seen.  
The ride down was silent, as Chie was typing on her phone ( Kotone thought that Chie was doing business ), and Kotone was keeping her hands to herself despite wanting so desperately to hold Chie's.  
Once they got out, the conversation that they were having was resumed as they made their way to the Izakaya. On the way there, Kotone realized that Chie's definition of just around the block meant a twenty minute walk. But it was fine. On the way, Chie made comments on the buildings that they passed, and what had happened in them. Kotone was impressed by the amount of knowledge that Chie had, she figured that because of her odd habits and jobs she just picked up that information. Chie on the other hand was simply thinking out loud. She didn’t quite know that it would impress her. 

Kotone realized that they weren’t going to a chain-type Izakaya, but instead it a small unknown one. It was better for her considering that despite the fact that she wasn’t a huge star, there were a few people in Tokyo that recognized her, and in an unknown place, there was less of a chance that she would be caught. 

The manager knew Chie, as he greeted her with her first name. “It’s nice to see you again! It’s been sometime since we’ve last seen each other! I hope you’ve been doing fine?”

Chie reached into her pocket and dropped the entry fee in the manager’s hand. “I’ve been busy. I’ve been working on my thesis for University, and it’s been tough.” Kotone didn’t realize that Chie was also a college student, she simply thought she worked around the clock. 

“I do wish you the best of luck with it. ” The manager took the money and placed it into his pocket. “How’s your mother?” He asked while taking them to the table. 

Chie sat down on the mat, and Kotone followed, staying silent the entire conversation, as if there was no room for her to speak. “She’s fine. Her leg is becoming worse, so that’s why we haven’t visited in awhile.” Chie was never open about her family. But, because this man had known her mother for a few years now, she felt comfortable enough to speak about it. 

“I see. I do hope she gets better soon.” The man stated, “Shall I get the usual for you?” Chie nodded and then the man looked over to the red-headed girl. “ And for you?” 

“Just Sake.” She stated, and the man left to fulfill their orders. “Do you come here often? You and the manager seem to get along very well.”

Chie was already tearing apart her chopsticks, much as a child would do, so that she could chew on the ends of one. “My mother used to work here when she was younger. I just used to sit here and the manager got to know me. I usually come here by myself or on some occasions with my friend.” Chie stuck the back of the chopstick in her mouth, “You aren’t going to eat anything?” 

“Ah, no it’s not that, I just prefer to drink before eating rather than while eating. That’s what I’m used too.”

“I’ve never met anyone like that.” Chie replied, while chewing on the chopstick. “If you don’t want to eat something heavy it’s no problems, most of the portions here are small.” 

Kotone smiled at Chie, before placing her hand on the table, hoping that Chie would get the message to hold it. But, despite Chie being good at reading queues, this one seemed to pass over her head. 

For the most part when they were dining together, Chie ate, and Kotone drank. Chie wasn’t a heavy drinker, and she knew her body didn’t process it very well, so she avoided in its entirety. Perhaps it was because the first few times she consumed alcohol it was mixed with human blood. 

Chie mostly just ate Korokke for its texture, and drank water as most of the other drinks on the list, including teas, were too strong for her taste. As the night went on, Kotone became more rowdy and Chie was more than happy to listen to her ramble about different things. Kotone , Chie realized, was much smarter and angrier than she let on. She mostly complained about how the idol business was horrible, but she was willing to continue doing it for the sake of her sister. 

When the night was coming to an end, or at about midnight, Chie paid the bill, and decided that Kotone would come home with her tonight rather than let her go home by herself, and potentially hurt let her herself.  Chie grabbed the idol's hand and then exited the restaurant. 


End file.
